Phonograph attachment



F. C. MEYER PHONOGRAPH ATTACHMENT Filed Nov. 18. 1921 fw Ufff/f gj Z Wmv@ Patented .lune 24, 1924.

oil-Flc FRED C. MEYER, OF GARY, INDIANA.

PHONOGRAPH ATTACHMENT.

Application led November 18, 1921. Serial No. 516,051.

To @ZZ whom/@'15 may concer/n.

Be it known that I, FRED C. MEYER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Gary, in the county of Lake and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Phonograph Attachments, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in phonograph attachments, and it consists in the combinations, constructions, and arrangements herein described and claimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a phonograph attachment which will increase.

the capacity of records of ordinary size.

A futher object of my invention is to provide a device of the type described which has means by which a record of ordinary type can be played or which can play my improved form of record.

A further object of my invention is to provide a device of the type described which will automatically stop the rotation of the record when the latter has been played.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification, and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming part of this application, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the device as shown attached to a phonograph of ordinary construction,

Figure 2 is a plan View of thedevice,

Figure 3 is a section along the line 3-3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a section along the line 4-4 of Figure 1,v

Figure 5 is a plan view of a part of the device, and

Figure 6 is a section along the line 6--6 of Figure 5.

In carrying out my invention, I make use of a phonograph of ordinary construction which is provided with a table 1. A spindle 2 is centrall disposed and rotatably mounted inthe ta le 1. The motor 3 is adapted to drive the spindle 2. The upper end of the rlgidly secured thereto and on which is rotatably disposed a turntable support 5. A turntable 6 is secured to the support 5 by any means (not shown) and in turn has a record spindle 2 is provided with a collar 4 which is j 7 disposed thereon. It will be observed that the upper end 8 of the spindle 2 is made square for a purpose hereafter described.

The parts described so far are ordinary in' has a beveled gear 11 mounted at one end thereof. The spindle 2 carries a beveled gear 12 which is adapted to engage the beveled gear 11. A pivot rod 13 is also mounted in the members 9 and has rigidly secured thereto a frame 14. As will be seen in Figures 1 to 4 inclusive, the frame 14 carries a square rod 15 which is rotatably disposed therein. The square rod 15 is also provided with a gear 16 which is adapted to mesh with a gear 17, the latter being carried by the worm shaft 10. A friction roller 18 is slidably disposed on the rod 15 and is adapted to rotate therewith. The roller 18 is also provided with a hub 19. A slidable frame 20, mounted on the rod 13 and the hub 19, is disposed between the worm shaft 10 and a threaded shaft i 21 (see Figure 3). The frame 20 has two grooves 22 and 23 therein which are adapted to alternately receive the worm shaft 1() and the threaded shaft 21. The grooves 22 and 23 are provided with threads which are adapted to mesh with the worm shaft 10 and the threaded shaft 21 when either of these shafts are disposed therein. The friction roller 18 is so mounted in the frame 20 that it will be moved along the rod 15 when the frame 2O is moved by either the worm shaft 10 or the threaded shaft 21.

A bell crank lever 24 is pivotally mounted on a rod 25 carried by the members 9 and is disposed adjacent the inner surface of the outer member 9. The arm 26 of the lever 24 carries a pin 27 which is sli'dably disposed in a slot 28 in the frame 14. As clearly shown in Figure 3, when one of the grooves 22 or 23 has its worm-shaft 10 or threaded shaft 21 disposed therein, the other groove is spaced away from its adjacent shaft. will be now observed that by swinging the lever 24, either the shaft 10 or the shaft 21 can be brought into engagement with the frame 20. It will also be observed that-when the shaft 10 is in engagement with the frame 20, the roller 18 does not engage the turntable 6, whereby the latter will not be rotated.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, the operation thereof may be readily understood. In playing a record 7, the roller 18 is so disposed that it is directly beneath a reproducing needle (not shown) of the phonograph. rlhe shaft 21 is so threaded that it will automatically keep the roller 18 positioned directly beneath the reproducing needle as the latter moves inwardly. rlihe shaft 21 is rotated by means of a gear 28 which is secured thereto and a gear 29 which is mounted on the shaft 10. It will therefore be observed that as the frame 20 is moved inwardly by the rotation of the shaft 21, the centrifugal speed of the record 7 will be gradually increased in direct proportion as the circles on the record decrease. rll`he linear distance of the lines passing beneath the reproducing needle will be always the same in any given length of time. ln this manner, the capacity of a twelve inch record, for instance, is increased by twothirds. The linear distance of the circumference of the largest circle on a twelve inch record is over two times as long as'the linear distance of the smaller circle thereon. ln the records of ordinary type, only the same number of words or the like can be recorded on each circle therein. llt is evident that if the .speed of the record is reduced somewhat when the re roducing needle is traveling in the largest c1rcles of the record,V the capacity of the record is greatly increased.

The frame 2O acts as an automatic brake to the turntable 6, since as soon as it abuts the innermember 9, the shaft 21 is prevented from rotation which in turn locks the shafts 10 and 15, and thereby prevents further rotation of the roller 18. The operator can then swing the lever 24 so as to 'bring the groove 22 into engagement with the shaft 10. It will be noted that this shaft is provided with coarse threads which are adapted to rapidly move the frame 20 back to its starting position. ln the same manner as the frame 20 acted asv an' automatic brake to the turntable 6, it acts as an automatic brake to the motor 3 when 1t abuts the -outer member 9.

ln case a record of ordinary type is vdesired to be played, ll dispose a plate 30, having a square opening 31 therein and having pins 32 carried thereby, in a recess 33 of the turntable 6. The recess 33is provided with bores 34 which are adapted to receive the pins 32. ll then swing the lever 24 into neu- Atral position so that the shafts 10 land 21 will not be disposed in the grooves 22 and 23, respectively. The roller 18 is thrown out of engagement with the turntable 6 and the rotation of the spindle 2 is imparted directly to the turntable, since the square opening 3l meeste is disposed over the square end 8 of the spindle and rotates therewith. rlihe rotation of the plate 30 by the spindle 2 causes the turntable 6 to rotateat the same speed as the spindle 2.

lit will be observed that liprovide a device simple `in construction and as heretofore stated, which will greatlyincrease the capacity of the records of ordinary size played thereon. llt is obvious that many modifications and adaptations of the form of the device pictured in the accompanying drawings may be provided without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as disclosed n the foregoing specification vand set forth more particularly in the appended claims.

ll claim:

1. A device of the type described comprisin a friction roller, means for rotating said ro ler at a constant speed, means for moving said roller in one direction along its axis, means for moving said roller in the other direction along its axis, and means for selectively throwing into operation said second or said third named means, said third named means being adapted to move said roller downwardly when thrown into operation.

2. The combination with a turntable, of a friction roller adapted to rotate said turntable, means for moving the roller toward the center of the turntable at a certain speed, means for moving said roller away from the center of the turntable at a greater speed, and means for selectively throwing into operation said first or said second named means, said roller being-'thrown out of operative engagement with said turntable when said second named means is actuating said roller.

3. The combination with a turntable, of a friction roller adapted to rotate said turntable, a screw having line threads and being adapted to move said roller toward the cen-y 'rotating said screws at the same speed, and means for operatively connecting said roller to either of said screws. d

4. The combination with a turntable, of a friction roller adapted to rotate said turntable, a screw having fine threads and being adapted to vmove said roller toward the center of the turntable, a second screw having coarse threads for moving said roller away from the center of said turntable, means for rotatin said screws at the same speed, and means for operatively connecting said roller to either of said screws, said last named means throwing said roller out of engagement with said turntable when connecting said roller to said coarse threaded screw.

5..'lihe combination with a turntable, of two screws disposed parallel with respect to each other, a friction roller, means for actuating said screws and said friction roller, a frame for carrying said roller and being adapted to be moved when operatively connected to either of said screws, and mea-ns for operatively connecting said frame to either of said screws.

6. The combination with a turntable, of two screws disposed parallel with respect to each other, a friction roller, means for actu- 10 ating said screws and said friction roller, a

frame for carrying said rollerl and being adapted to be moved `when operatively connected to either of said screws, and means for operatively connecting said frame to FRED C. MEYER. 

